Although European soccer clubs again beat out American teams for the top three spots on the annual ranking, Arsenal, whose largest shareholder is Stan Kroenke, came in at No. 16 with an estimated value of $1.331 billion. Pat Bowlen’s Broncos took the No. 25 spot, with a valuation of $1.161 billion.

Real Madrid ($3.44 billion), Barcelona ($3.2 billion), Manchester United ($2.81 million) took the top three spots, respectively. The New York Yankees, the top-ranked MLB team, came in a No. 4 ($2.5 billion), while the Cowboys ($2.3 billion) ranked No. 5 as the most valuable NFL franchise.

Arsenal slid six spots from last year’s ranking of No. 10, as the team’s value dipped by $194 million. The Broncos also fell, from No. 22 in 2013, although their value actually increased by $29 million.

The Broncos have earned top spots on a number of rankings this offseason, thanks primarily to their 38-year-old star quarterback.

I’m new to soccer, but I find it mindblowing that soccer teams are worth so much more money than NFL teams, especially when some soccer teams are located in struggling and/or third-world countries. Just consider Spain’s unemployment rate is 25 percent. Soccer player salaries are similarly mindblowing.

Vinnie Vidivici

The Broncos would rank higher in the list if they had many more Super Bowl trophies.
Without championships, the value of the team comes into question.

Nicki Jhabvala is a Broncos beat writer for The Denver Post. She was previously the digital news editor for sports. Before arriving in Denver, she spent five years at Sports Illustrated working primarily as its online NBA editor. She also spent two years as a home page editor at the New York Times.